*Neville never took N.E.W.T. level [[Transfiguration]], since he only earned an Acceptable. However, like Harry and Ron, he was still recruited by [[Kingsley Shacklebolt]] into the [[Auror]] department after the battle to help track down any remaining Death Eaters.<ref>[http://www.accio-quote.org/articles/2007/1217-pottercast-anelli.html "PotterCast Interviews J.K. Rowling, part one." PotterCast #130, 17 December 2007</ref>

*Neville never took N.E.W.T. level [[Transfiguration]], since he only earned an Acceptable. However, like Harry and Ron, he was still recruited by [[Kingsley Shacklebolt]] into the [[Auror]] department after the battle to help track down any remaining Death Eaters.<ref>[http://www.accio-quote.org/articles/2007/1217-pottercast-anelli.html "PotterCast Interviews J.K. Rowling, part one." PotterCast #130, 17 December 2007</ref>

*In the ''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (video game)]]'', Neville deflects a curse sent from [[Tom Riddle|Voldemort]] using [[Godric Gryffindor's Sword|Godric Gryffindor's sword]], causing it to hit [[Bellatrix Lestrange]] in the leg. This could've been to allow Neville payback towards Bellatrix for torturing his parents.

*In the ''[[Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (video game)]]'', Neville deflects a curse sent from [[Tom Riddle|Voldemort]] using [[Godric Gryffindor's Sword|Godric Gryffindor's sword]], causing it to hit [[Bellatrix Lestrange]] in the leg. This could've been to allow Neville payback towards Bellatrix for torturing his parents.

−

[[File:Tumblr_kolxex4M5g1qzy9rxo1_500.png|thumb|From top to bottom, Neville age 11, Neville age 12, Neville age 13, Neville age 14, Neville age 15.]]

Contents

Biography

Early life

"The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord approaches... Born to those who have thrice defied him, born as the seventh month dies...and the Dark Lord will mark him as his equal, but he will have power the Dark Lord knows not...and either must die at the hand of the other for neither can live while the other survives... The one with the power to vanquish the Dark Lord will be born as the seventh month dies."

Neville's grandmother was a stern and formidable woman who was concerned when her grandson did not exhibit early signs of magic. She often chided Neville for not living up to his family's honour and is partly the reason for Neville's lack of self-confidence early in his school years. His relatives feared that Neville might be a Squib, though this was disproved when his great-uncle Algie was holding him out of a window by his feet when he was offered some lemon meringue and let go. Miraculously, he bounced. Previous to this, there were various attempts to make him show signs of magic, including dropping him off Blackpool pier, where, according to Neville, he nearly drowned. Neville inherited his father's wand at the age of eleven when he started to attend Hogwarts. This wand was later broken during the Battle of the Department of Mysteries.

Education at Hogwarts

First year

Neville Longbottom: "Sorry, but have you seen a toad at all? I've lost him! He keeps getting away from me!"

Much of his first year was plagued by similar mishaps. In his first Potions lesson, Neville managed to melt Seamus Finnigan's cauldron, and was subsequently drenched in the boil-curing potion they had been brewing.[8] The following week, in his first flying lesson with Madam Hooch, Neville accidentally broke his wrist after falling off his broom from a great height; afraid of being left behind on the ground, he had pushed off too early.

He was taken to the hospital wing and his wrist was healed. Several hours later, he ended up heading to the Hogwarts Trophy Room with Harry, Ron, and Hermione for Harry's duel with Draco Malfoy. Nearly getting caught by Filch, they end up in the forbidden third floor corridor, where Neville drew Harry's attention to a giant three-headed dog. They manage to escape and safely return to Gryffindor Tower.[9]

That year, Neville received a Remembrall from his grandmother as a gift. It was flown in by an owl. This particular gift later allowed Harry Potter to become Gryffindor seeker. Draco Malfoy threw the small sphere into the air, and Harry flew to grab it, standing up for Neville. Minerva McGonagall saw how easily Harry retrieved the ball and asked him to join the team.[9]

"Longbottom, if brains were gold you'd be poorer than Weasley, and that's saying something."

Shortly after the Christmas holidays, Neville was the target of a prank by Draco Malfoy, in which his legs were stuck together with the Leg-Locker Curse. Neville had to bunny-hop all the way to Gryffindor Tower so someone could perform the counter-curse. When Harry, Ron and Hermione urged him to report Malfoy, Neville replied that he didn't want more trouble. Harry gave Neville his last Chocolate Frog from Christmas and consoled him by telling that he was worth twelve Malfoys, and that the Sorting Hat chose him for Gryffindor, while Malfoy was in "stinking Slytherin." Several seconds later, Neville inadvertently helped the trio identify Nicolas Flamel when he gave Harry Dumbledore's collectible card from the Chocolate Frog.[10]

Neville was sent to the hospital wing a third time after a Quidditch match between Gryffindor and Hufflepuff. During the match, Malfoy began to taunt the Gryffindor Quidditch team, as well as Neville. Neville challenged Malfoy on hearing this, and single-handedly took on Malfoy's friends Vincent Crabbe and Gregory Goyle, while Ron fought Malfoy. Although he was knocked out by Crabbe and Goyle, Madam Pomfrey insisted that Neville would make a full recovery. This was the first time that Neville stood up for himself.[11]

In time, Neville learned about Harry and Hermione's attempt to take Norbert the Norwegian Ridgeback up to the Astronomy Tower to send to Ron's brother Charlie. When he learned Malfoy was trying to get them caught, Neville snuck out of Gryffindor Tower to find them and warn them. He instead ended up getting caught by Professor McGonagall. He lost fifty House points, and was put in detention with Harry, Hermione, and Malfoy. Sent into the Forbidden Forest with Hagrid to search for an injured unicorn, Neville and Malfoy went along one path with Fang, while the other three took another. When Malfoy snuck up behind Neville and grabbed him to scare him, Neville panicked and sent up wand sparks to warn Hagrid. When Hagrid learned the truth, he instead paired Neville with himself and Hermione.[12]

Neville: "You can't go out, you'll be caught again. Gryffindor will be in even more trouble... I won't let you do it. I'll — I'll fight you!"

Ron: "Neville, get away from that hole and don't be an idiot —"

Neville: "Don't you call me an idiot! I don't think you should be breaking any more rules! And you were the ones who told me to stand up to people!"

The night Quirinus Quirrell attempted to steal the Philosopher's Stone, Neville attempted to stop Harry, Ron and Hermione from sneaking out, though he did not know what they were trying to do. However, he thought that they should not be breaking rules and risking that Gryffindor would lose more points, and blocked the portrait hole, willing to fight them to make them stay. Hermione apologised and struck Neville with a Full Body-Bind Curse so that she, Harry, and Ron could leave. This was another early instance where Neville showed bravery, standing up to his only friends.[13]

"And finally, it takes a great deal of bravery to stand up to your enemies, but a great deal more to stand up to your friends. I award ten points to Neville Longbottom!"

For standing up to the trio, Neville won ten points for Gryffindor at the end-of-term feast. Having moments before, tied Slytherin for the House Cup, this pushed Gryffindor into undisputed first place. In the final exams, he scored well in Herbology, making up for his poor marks in Potions.[14]

Second year

Neville's first appearance in 1992 was after the start-of-term feast, where he applauded Harry and Ron for flying a car to Hogwarts. The following morning when Ron received a Howler from his mother, Neville urged him to open it quickly.[15]

After the Basilisk attack on Colin Creevey, Neville feared that he might be attacked, due to his poor magical skill, and tried to protect himself by purchasing a large, "evil-smelling" green onion, a pointed purple crystal, and a rotting newt tail. However the other students pointed out that Neville should be all right; he was a pure-blood and thus unlikely to be attacked.[16]

Neville attended the first (and only) meeting of Lockhart's Duelling Club. To practise the Disarming Charm, Neville was paired with Justin Finch-Fletchley. When Lockhart suggested the pair to volunteer spell blocking, Snape shot this down, claiming that Neville had difficulty with the simplest spells, and they would have to send what was left of Justin to the hospital wing in a matchbox.[16]

Shortly after Valentine's Day, Neville informed Harry that his belongings had been searched by someone.[17]

Neville watching Harry with a Firebolt at the end of the year.

Third year

Severus Snape: "Possibly no one's warned you, Lupin, but this class contains Neville Longbottom. I would advise you not to entrust him with anything difficult. Not unless Ms. Granger is hissing instructions in his ear."

Remus Lupin: "I was hoping that Neville would assist me with the first stage of the operation, and I am sure he will perform it admirably."

In their first Divination class, Neville accidentally broke two of Professor Trelawney's tea cups while reading tea leaves. As the class departed, Professor Trelawney warned him that he would be late next class and urged him to work hard to catch up with everyone else. In Care of Magical Creatures class, Neville practised bowing to a Hippogriff; he constantly backed away from the animal, which didn't seem to want to bow back.[19]

The next day in Potions, Neville again managed to earn the ire of Professor Snape. He somehow was able to turn his Shrinking Solution orange instead of green. To ensure Neville would get the potion right, Snape told him that he would feed some of it to Neville's toad, Trevor, at the end of the class. Desperately, he asked Hermione for help; she whispered instructions to him out of the corner of her mouth. By the end of class, he was able to turn his potion green, and successfully shrunk Trevor from a toad to a tadpole. Upon returning Trevor to his proper size, Snape took five points from Hermione simply to spite the Gryffindors.[20]

Later that day, Neville helped Professor Remus Lupin's first practical Defence Against the Dark Arts lesson about boggarts. Neville was the first person to be asked. When asked what scared him most in the world, Neville replied "Professor Snape". To counter the boggart, Lupin asked Neville to picture Snape in his grandmother's clothes. For his help, Neville earned ten points for Gryffindor. Neville destroyed the boggart at the end of class.[20]

In the spring of 1994, Neville lost the passwords to Gryffindor Tower; because Sir Cadogan changed them so frequently, Neville needed to write them down so he could remember them.[21] After the passwords disappeared, Sirius Black managed to enter Gryffindor Tower with a knife. After learning Neville was indirectly responsible, Professor McGonagall banned him from all future visits into Hogsmeade for the remainder of the school year, gave him a detention, and forbade anyone from giving him the password to the common room, thus he had to wait outside the portrait until someone came by. Two days later, Neville received a Howler from his grandmother; he tore out of the Great Hall, amid shouts of laughter, and opened it in the Entrance Hall, where his grandmother's angry voice told him he brought shame to their family.[22]

At the end of his Divination final exam, Neville was told that, if he told anyone his results, he would suffer a serious accident.[23]

Having heard from Professor Sprout about Neville's aptitude in Herbology, "Moody" cheered Neville up by telling him what Sprout had said and gave him a number of books he thought Neville would enjoy. One of them was Magical Water Plants of the Mediterranean, which Crouch intended for Harry to read in order to learn all about Gillyweed for the second task[25], but he was stubbornly searching through the library.[26]

A few days later in class, Neville was put under the Imperius Curse by Moody, under the pretence of letting the class know what it felt like. Under Moody's influence, Neville performed a series of "quite astonishing gymnastics" that he could not have performed normally.[27]

When the Yule Ball was announced during the Triwizard Tournament, Neville asked Hermione to go with him. After Hermione politely declined, having already agreed to attend with Viktor Krum, Neville asked Ginny Weasley. While the pair seemed to enjoy themselves, Neville accidentally stepped on Ginny's toes while dancing.[28]

Fifth year

Bellatrix: "Longbottom? Why I have had the pleasure of meeting your parents, boy..."

In 1995, Neville met with Harry and Ginny on the Hogwarts Express. Searching for seats, the trio entered Luna Lovegood's compartment. Once inside, he excitedly showed them his Mimbulus Mimbletonia, a birthday present from his great-uncle Algie. He told them about his plans to show it to Professor Sprout, as well as wanting to breed it.[29]

After arriving at Hogwarts, Neville defended Harry during a verbal fight with Seamus Finnigan, claiming that the Daily Prophet was going downhill, not Harry and Dumbledore. He and his grandmother both believed Harry's claim that Voldemort had returned, and had cancelled their subscription to the newspaper.[30]

When Harry, Ron, and Hermione began organising Dumbledore's Army, Neville was one of the first to sign up. At their first meeting in the Room of Requirement, Neville was left partner-less when they began practice; Neville instead partnered with Harry. After successfully Disarming Harry, Neville then joined Ron and Hermione, so Harry could check on the others. [31] With Harry's encouragement, by the beginning of Christmas break, Neville had improved "beyond all recognition."[32]

During Christmas break, Ron, Hermione and Ginny learned that Neville's parents were not dead, but patients in St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, having gone insane after being tortured by a group of Death Eaters at the end of the First Wizarding War. Harry was the only one who already knew this, having found out in the Pensieve in 1994, but he had told no one, keeping Neville's secret safe. Before Neville left, his mother handed him an empty Droobles Blowing Gum wrapper; while his grandmother wanted him to throw it away, Neville instead pocketed it.[33]

When it was learned that ten Death Eaters escaped from Azkaban in 1996, including three of the ones responsible for the torture of Neville's parents, Neville did not speak of it, but it "wrought a strange and even slightly alarming change" in him, according to Harry. He worked harder than anyone in D.A. meetings, and was the fastest to pick up new spells aside from Hermione.[34]

When Harry had a vision that Sirius Black was in danger at the Ministry of Magic, Neville was one of the D.A. members who volunteered to accompany him. He, Ginny and Luna joined the trio in flying Thestrals to London, despite Harry's reluctance to let them accompany him.[35]

Neville: "We were all in the D.A. together. It was all supposed to be about fighting You-Know-Who, wasn't it? And this is the first chance we've had to do something real — or was that all just a game or something?"

Once in the Hall of Prophecies, Harry was drawn to an orb that had his name on it. Neville and Hermione urged him not to remove it; once Harry had, the group was confronted by Death Eaters. [36] In the subsequent battle, Neville accompanied Harry and Hermione. He disarmed a Death Eater who was struggling with Harry, accidentally disarming Harry as well. Later, Antonin Dolohov broke Neville's nose and wand, but Neville refused Harry's suggestion that he leave with an incapacitated Hermione to go get help, instead carrying her while he and Harry searched for Ron, Ginny and Luna.[37]

The other three were soon incapacitated and Neville and Harry were cornered by the Death Eaters. Bellatrix Lestrange briefly tortured Neville with the Cruciatus Curse, both to try to make Harry hand over the prophecy and to see how long Neville held out before "cracking" like his parents.[37]

After the Order of the Phoenix arrived, Harry tried to get out with Neville, who was struck with Tarantallegra by Dolohov. [38] As Harry pulled him up a flight of stairs, Neville accidentally smashed the prophecy. As the battle continued, Neville alerted Harry to the appearance of Albus Dumbledore. The battle soon ended, and Neville and his friends were transported back to Hogwarts, where Neville's nose was fixed by Madam Pomfrey.[39]

Harry soon learned the contents of the prophecy from Dumbledore. As both Neville and Harry were born at the close of July to parents who had all escaped Voldemort three times, they both qualified for the prophecy child. However, Dumbledore believed that the prophecy did indeed refer to Harry, not Neville, as Voldemort marked Harry as his equal by attacking him.[3]

Sixth year

On 1 September, 1996, Neville sat with Harry Potter and Luna Lovegood on the Hogwarts Express. When Romilda Vane, a younger Gryffindor student, invited Harry to come to her compartment and implicitly insulted Neville and Luna, Harry coldly rebuffed her, emphasising that Neville and Luna were among his closest and most loyal friends. Neville was later invited to join Horace Slughorn, the new Potions professor, in his train compartment. [40] Slughorn was searching for new students to add to his Slug Club, but Neville didn't seem to meet Slughorn's requirements, and was not invited back to any of Slughorn's parties.

Seventh year

Neville: "Alecto, Amycus’s sister, teaches Muggle Studies, which is compulsory for everyone. We’ve all got to listen to her explain how Muggles are like animals, stupid and dirty, and how they drive wizards into hiding by being vicious toward them, and how the natural order is being reestablished. I got this one ((indicates to a large gash on his cheek)) for asking her how much Muggle blood she and her brother have got."

Ron: "Blimey, Neville, there’s a time and a place for getting a smart mouth."

Neville: "You didn’t see her. You wouldn’t have stood it either. The thing is, it helps when people stand up to them, it gives everyone hope."

— Neville explaining the situation at Hogwarts during his seventh year[src]

The revived D.A. helped protect fellow students from being bullied by the Death Eater teachers, and generally rebelled against authority, such as writing "Dumbledore’s Army, still recruiting" on the Hogwarts walls and freeing students from detention. Neville, Luna and Ginny also attempted to steal Godric Gryffindor's sword from Snape's office, but were caught on the way out. In his own way to subvert the Carrows' manner of discipline, Snape only gave them a detention, sending them into the Forbidden Forest with Hagrid. Neville eventually decided to cease their open rebellion after Michael Corner got caught and tortured freeing a chained-up first year.

Neville was eventually left alone to lead the rebellion efforts, as Luna was dragged off the Hogwarts Express by Death Eaters around Christmas of 1997 to coerce her father into ceasing his political dissidence in The Quibbler, and Ginny did not return to Hogwarts following the Easter holidays, as her family went into hiding following Harry, Ron and Hermione's escape from Malfoy Manor. By this time, the Carrows were aware of Neville's role in the rebellion, and he suffered beatings and torture. The Ministry also targeted Neville's grandmother to try to intimidate him, but she evaded capture and went on the run.

Eventually, the Carrows realised that Neville was the main ringleader and decided that Hogwarts could do without him. Fearing that they may kill him, Neville made for the Room of Requirement, which he was able to turn into a hiding place for the D.A., and to connect to the Hog's Head in order to get food from Aberforth Dumbledore. By May, most of the D.A. had taken to living there.[42]

Battle of Hogwarts

"Everybody in this room has proved he's loyal to Dumbledore. Loyal to you."

Neville standing up to Voldemort and his army during the Battle of Hogwarts.

Neville during the Battle of Hogwarts - bloodied and battle-worn.

During the first round of battle, Neville used various plants to attack Death Eaters, and helped transport the injured and dead when a temporary cease-fire was called. He briefly spoke to Harry, who told him that it was top priority to kill Voldemort's snake, Nagini.[45] When the Death Eaters approached with a "dead" Harry, Neville stood up in defiance of Voldemort. He was subsequently forced to wear the Sorting Hat as it burned because he refused to join Voldemort. Fortunately, due to Harry's sacrifice, Neville was able to shrug off the Full Body-Bind Curse.

Lord Voldemort: "You show spirit and bravery, and you come of noble stock. You will make a very valuable Death Eater. We need your kind, Neville Longbottom."

Because of his tremendous bravery shown on the battlefield, Neville was able to pull Godric Gryffindor's sword from the burning hat, in the process proving himself a true Gryffindor, something that was doubted constantly throughout due to his apparently weak-willed, shy, and bumbling nature. In a single stroke, he killed Nagini, destroying Voldemort's last remaining Horcrux. Neville subsequently teamed up with Ron Weasley as the defenders of Hogwarts and Death Eaters were forced into the Great Hall and defeated Fenrir Greyback. Also during the Battle Neville duelled Scabior on the Covered Bridge. Scabior fell to his death when the bridge fell down.[46]

Neville briefly worked as an Auror immediately following the war.[47] Sometime afterwards, he became Professor of Herbology at Hogwarts.[1] His students were impressed when he would show them his Dumbledore's Army coin, which he and other D.A. members kept as a badge of honour.[48] Neville remained in contact with his old friends, as in 2017, Ginny told her and Harry's eldest son to give Neville their love when he arrived at Hogwarts.[1]

In time, he married his former classmate and D.A. member Hannah Abbott, and the pair lived at the Leaky Cauldron, where she became the landlady.[49] It is unknown if they ever had any children.

Neville in his fourth year.

Physical appearance

Neville was described as round-faced,[5] with a short, chubby build and blond [50] hair. He had quite bucked teeth. He was called "fat" by Pansy Parkinson, but this may have been an exaggeration, as Pansy frequently made disparaging comments about Gryffindor students.[9] Neville strongly resembled his mother.

Personality and traits

Bellatrix: "Longbottom? Why, I have had the pleasure of meeting your parents, boy."

Neville: "I DOE YOU HAB!"

Bellatrix: "...let's see how long Longbottom lasts before he cracks like his parents...unless Potter wants to give us the prophecy."

When he was younger, Neville was clumsy, forgetful, shy, and many considered him ill-suited for Gryffindor house because he seemed timid. However, Neville proved that the Sorting Hat had seen the bravery beneath his insecurity, as he stood up to his only friends as a first-year[5] and later became one of the D.A.’s most courageous members.[31] Part of Neville’s problem seems to have been poor self-esteem, as he referred to himself as a "nobody" and "almost a Squib"[16] at times. This was likely caused by his grandmother’s belief that he was not living up to his parents’ accomplishments, and browbeating from fellow students and people like Professor Snape. Though he came from a pure-blood family, he held no prejudice against half-bloods or Muggle-borns.

Neville Longbottom showed his interest in Herbology (the study of plants)

With the support of his friends, to whom he was very loyal, the encouragement of Professor Remus Lupin to face his fears in his third year, and the motivation of knowing his parents’ torturers were on the loose, Neville became braver, more self-assured, and dedicated to the fight against Lord Voldemort and his Death Eaters.[34] This was proven by his participation in many battles and his revival of the D.A. in the face of threats and torture at the hands of the Carrows in his seventh year, as well as his defiance of Voldemort himself during the final battle.[42]

Magical abilities and skills

Neville was not an academically strong student in his early years, often requiring Hermione’s help in class and with school-work, but part of this was likely caused by his use of another's wand, poor self-esteem, and anxiety caused the incessant bullying from many of his peers and Severus Snape due to his forgetful nature and clumsiness. This was confirmed by Minerva McGonagall. However, upon his newly-found bravery and confidence in his later years his talents and power as a wizard grew.

Herbologist: Neville was gifted at Herbology, earning an Outstanding in his O.W.L. on the subject. Even Professor Sprout, teacher of Herbology at Hogwarts, confirmed that. He later worked as Professor of this subject himself.

Transfiguration: Though not excellent at Transfiguration, Professor McGonagall stated that Neville's work only lacked confidence. With that said, Neville managed to score an "Acceptable", but he was unable to continue into the N.E.W.T. level.[51]

Bravery: Neville showed a great amount of bravery when he stood up to the Carrows and even Lord Voldemort himself.

Relationships

Family

Parents

Neville Longbottom: "Fourteen years ago, a Death Eater named Bellatrix Lestrange used the Cruciatus Curse on my parents. She tortured them for information, but they never gave in. I'm quite proud to be their son. But I'm not sure I'm ready for everyone to know just yet."

Harry Potter: "We're going to make them proud, Neville. That's a promise."

— Neville and Harry Potter about the fate of Neville's parents sometime in 1995.

As Neville's parents, Alice and Frank Longbottom, had been permanent residents of St Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries since Neville's infancy, he never knew them as the popular and talented Aurors they were reputed to be. Nevertheless, he held them in high esteem, much like his friend Harry looked up to the parents he never knew. Neville regularly visited his parents at St Mungo's with his grandmother, where he tried to speak to them and brought them sweets, keeping the wrappers his mother handed back to him, even when his grandmother told him to throw them in the bin.[33] Their torture clearly haunted him, as he was badly shaken by seeing the Cruciatus Curse demonstrated on a spider in his fourth year.[25]

Augusta Longbottom

Neville was raised by his grandmother, Augusta Longbottom, after his parents were tortured to the point of insanity when he was an infant. This was pivotal in the development of his personality, as his grandmother often expressed her disappointment with her grandson's seeming lack of magical ability, and what she considered his inability to live up to his parents' skills. When Neville was a child, his grandmother, as well as some of his other relatives, feared that he might have been a Squib.[16] However, when Neville showed great bravery and heroism during the Second Wizarding War, his grandmother was clearly very proud of him. She came to Hogwarts during the final battle and ran off to assist him in fighting Death Eaters.[44]

Uncle Algie

Neville appeared to be fairly close to his great-uncle Algie, who tried to "scare" magic into him when he was younger; he once accidentally dropped Neville out of a window while reaching for a meringue, and when Neville bounced, his family was pleased to discover that he was not, in fact, a Squib. Algie later rewarded him with his pet toad Trevor for getting into Hogwarts. Algie and Neville appear to have shared an interest in Herbology, as Algie gave Neville his very rare Mimbulus Mimbletonia plant, which at one point was the password to the Gryffindor Common Room.

Trevor

Trevor was Neville's pet toad. He was given to Neville by his Uncle Algie upon Neville's gaining admission to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Neville often lost Trevor, as he did the first time he rode the Hogwarts Express and Hermione Granger met Harry Potter and Ron Weasley as she helped him search. In Neville's third year, Professor Snape made him test his Shrinking Solution on the toad; though Neville's dubious potion-making skills could have resulted in the toad's death, Trevor was successfully transformed into a tadpole, much to the Gryffindors' delight. At some point, Trevor escaped into the Hogwarts Lake. Both pet and owner felt a sense of relief.[6]

In 1996, Harry refused to allow Romilda Vane to insult Neville and Luna Lovegood, stating that they were his real friends, and the only ones who had fought alongside Ron, Ginny, Hermione and himself at the Department of Mysteries. At the end of the year, Neville and Harry both fought in the Battle of the Astronomy Tower and attended Dumbledore's funeral.

The next year, while Harry, Ron and Hermione left Hogwarts to search for Voldemort's Horcruxes, Neville, along with Ginny Weasley and Luna Lovegood, led Dumbledore's Army in maintaining a steady level of opposition against Alecto and Amycus Carrow, two Death Eaters who had been appointed deputy Headmaster and Headmistress of Hogwarts under Severus Snape. Neville would later state that the hope Harry inspired in standing up to his enemies drove Neville to do the same. Neville and Harry fought together in the Battle of Hogwarts, where Harry realised that Neville was one of his closest friends and one of the few people he would like to see once again before he dies in the forest and Neville showed his bravery and loyalty to Harry when he openly defied Voldemort and beheaded Nagini, destroying Voldemort's last remaining Horcrux.

Neville and Harry remained in contact after the end of the Second Wizarding War, showing their good friendship and Harry's children were later taught by Neville, who had been appointed Herbology professor at Hogwarts.

Because of his lack of confidence in classes, Neville frequently made mistakes, and Hermione usually came to his assistance, often whispering instructions in his ear. She also took note of how shaken Neville was by their fourth year lesson on the Unforgivable Curses, shouting for Professor Moody to stop demonstrating the Cruciatus Curse and later asking Neville if it was all right. Because Hermione had "always been so nice", Neville plucked up the courage to ask her to the Yule Ball in 1994, though she had already accepted the offer of Viktor Krum.[28]

Neville met Ron Weasley on the Hogwarts Express at the start of their first year. As both were sorted into Gryffindor house, they became room-mates. Over time, Neville became good friends with Ron, who, like Hermione and Harry, encouraged Neville not to let the Slytherins get to him.

Ron, Hermione, and Ginny all learned about Neville's parents during their fifth year at Hogwarts, and were shocked to learn that the good-natured, clumsy boy was carrying such a dark secret. Ron and Neville both became members of Dumbledore's Army in 1995, in order to oppose Professor Umbridge and learn to fight the Death Eaters. They fought alongside one another at the Battle of the Department of Mysteries and the Battle of the Astronomy Tower. Neville greeted Ron, Harry, and Hermione enthusiastically when they returned to Hogwarts in 1998, and they all fought against Voldemort's forces in the Battle of Hogwarts. During the battle, Neville and Ron defeated Fenrir Greyback together protecting each other, after the battle they remained as best friends and they regularly see each other.

Luna Lovegood

Neville and Luna, a Ravenclaw student, first met on the Hogwarts Express, in 1995. Neville found Luna a bit "odd", as she believed in the existence of strange, mythical creatures, had a tendency to read magazines upside down, and wore earrings that appeared to be made of radishes. Luna, like Harry and Neville, had the ability to see Thestrals, as they had all seen someone die. Spacey as Luna seemed, she fought alongside Neville at the Battle of the Department of Mysteries, the Battle of the Astronomy Tower and the Battle of Hogwarts. At some point they became very close friends. During Neville's last year at Hogwarts, he, Luna and Ginny, re-formed and co-led Dumbledore's Army in order to oppose the Carrows. Neville seems to have a place in his heart for Luna, they also remained close friends in later life. It seemed that Luna was always glad when Neville, Ginny, Hermione, Ron and Harry were close by, proved when the trio visited Luna's father Xenophilius Lovegood and seeing Luna's room with their painting on her bedroom wall connected with gold letters spelling friends.

Draco Malfoy

Initially shy and clumsy, Neville regularly found himself on the receiving end of insults from Draco and his gang, and was often the butt of their jokes and pranks-- a fact which served only to make Neville clumsier and less confident. Encouraged by Hermione, Ron, and Harry to stand up for himself, Neville grew to be someone who was much more difficult to bully by his later years at Hogwarts, resisting against not only the Slytherin students, but also Alecto and Amycus Carrow and Severus Snape. During the Battle of Hogwarts, Neville proved to have made an impressive and complete turn around from his earlier years of crumbling under Draco's bullying, when he openly defied Lord Voldemort and beheaded Nagini, effectively destroying Voldemort's final Horcrux.

Hannah Abbott

Neville and Hannah Abbott were never shown as being more than classmates during school. Since Hannah was in Hufflepuff House and Neville in Gryffindor, they probably did not spend too much time together, though it is possible that they became friendly when they were both members of the first and second Dumbledore's Army. Sometime after leaving Hogwarts, Neville and Hannah married and moved into the Leaky Cauldron, where she worked as the landlady and Neville as the Hogwarts Herbology teacher.

It is also possible that she and Neville became close during Herbology lessons, as those were shared by Gryffindor and Hufflepuff of their year. It stands to reason that, since Herbology was where Neville excelled, he may have been confident and even charming amongst the plant life, thus attracting Hannah's attentions. Since Hannah lost her mother in her sixth year, it may also have been Neville's ability to sympathise with her grief that brought the two together, or simply Hannah felt attracted to Neville's heroism in the Battle of Hogwarts and when the war was over she kept contact with him, they fell in love and married.

Dumbledore's Army

Dumbledore's Army was an organisation led by Harry Potter that sought not only to undermine the dictatorial authority of Dolores Umbridge, but to offer students a means of learning the practical defensive magic Umbridge denied them in their actual Defence Against the Dark Arts class. Neville became a member at the time of its formation in 1995, and this marked something of a turning point both in terms Neville's relationships with other Hogwarts students, and in terms of his magical ability beyond Herbology. As the DA's practice progressed throughout the course of the year, Neville showed marked improvement in his ability to disarm and stun, as well as perform the Impediment Jinx and Reductor Curse, among others.

Neville, Ginny and Luna co-led the DA in 1997, when it was re-formed to oppose the reign of Severus Snape and Alecto and Amycus Carrow at Hogwarts. Most of the former members reunited and spent ample time hiding in the Room of Requirement, awaiting the return of Harry, Ron and Hermione. They were quick to mobilise against the invading Death Eaters, with Neville at their lead, while Harry, Ron and Hermione were searching for Rowena Ravenclaw's Diadem. While Fred Weasley and Colin Creevey were tragically killed, Neville fought valiantly and eventually beheaded Nagini, destroyed Voldemort's final remaining Horcrux.

Severus Snape

"Tell me, boy, does anything penetrate that thick skull of yours? Didn’t you hear me say, quite clearly, that only one rat spleen was needed? Didn’t I state plainly that a dash of leech juice would suffice? What do I have to do to make you understand, Longbottom?”"

During his years at school, Neville was terrified of Professor Severus Snape, and the poor boy managed to earn the Potions master's ire in almost every lesson. Snape regularly and unnecessarily targeted Neville with verbal taunts, threats, sarcasm, and malice, which put an extremely nervous Neville even more on edge. Snape went so far as to feed a few drops of Neville's Shrinking Solution to Neville's pet, Trevor, so as to humiliate him for doing badly on the potion and almost kill Neville's toad. Thanks to Hermione, Neville was able to fix his potion so that his toad wasn't harmed. Neville admitted in 1993 that Snape scared him more than anything else in the world, and was the form his boggart took. Indeed Neville is frightened of Snape, because Professor Lupin once asked the class what frightens them the most, Neville mumbled "Pfsr Snpe". When Professor Lupin asked Neville to say it clearly, everyone laughed and then Professor Lupin replied, "Professor Sna---yes, he frightens all."[20]

Snape: "Longbottom, at the end of this lesson we will feed a few drops of this potion to your toad and see what happens. Perhaps that will encourage you to do it properly."

When he sat his PotionsO.W.L. in 1996, Harry noted that Neville looked happier than usual without Snape around. Neville also co-led the second Dumbledore's Army and wrote slogans on the walls, in order to oppose Snape and the Carrows. Snape was killed by Nagini during the Battle of Hogwarts. Though Neville was present when Harry informed Voldemort of Snape's true allegiance, it is unknown how Neville reacted.

Death EatersAlecto and Amycus Carrow were appointed professors at Hogwarts in 1997, after Dumbledore's death. Amycus taught Defence Against the Dark Arts, which he changed to the Dark Arts, and Alecto taught Muggle Studies with an obvious anti-Muggle slant. Amycus and Alecto liked to punish the students with the use of torture, and ordered students to practice the Cruciatus Curse on other students who had been detained. Neville helped re-form Dumbledore's Army, along with Ginny and Luna, and maintained a steady opposition against the Carrows throughout the course of the year. In an attempt to control Neville, Ministry Auror John Dawlish was sent to take Neville's grandmother hostage; unfortunately for Dawlish, the tenacious Augusta Longbottom fought back, apparently putting Dawlish in St. Mungo's and going on the run. As the Carrows no longer had hope of finding any real leverage to use against Neville, and had no reason not to simply kill him, Neville went into hiding in the Room of Requirement, where he was soon joined by a number of other Gryffindor, Hufflepuff and Ravenclaw students who saw fit to do the same.

Hogwarts staff

Minerva McGonagall was Neville's Head of House and Transfiguration professor during his years at Hogwarts. She often scolded Neville for his clumsiness and incompetence, though it was more likely his lack of confidence that frustrated her. McGonagall knew that Neville was capable of more than he seemed and saw that he was actually brave, and thus encouraged him to work to his potential. She was also a friend of Neville's grandmother, and had known his parents in their days as Aurors. Neville and McGonagall both fought in the Battle of the Astronomy Tower and the Battle of Hogwarts, and both survived the war. Years after the war, Neville was given the position of Herbology professor at Hogwarts, although it is unknown if McGonagall still teaching there.

Bartemius Crouch Jr.

Barty Crouch Jr. was also involved in the torture of Neville's parents by means of the Cruciatus Curse. During Neville's fourth year, Barty impersonated Alastor Moody and served as Neville's Defence Against the Dark ArtsProfessor. During his first lesson with the fourth years, Barty (as Moody) took notice of Neville's name on the class register. He then demonstrated the three Unforgivable Curses on spiders, including the Cruciatus Curse, which left Neville deeply shaken. "Moody" afterwards had tea with Neville and gave him a book about Herbology, seemingly out of comfort and support, although it was later revealed that he had only done so to give Harry a clue about the Triwizard Tournament's second task. It is unknown how Neville reacted upon learning the truth about his D.A.D.A. teacher. Barty Crouch was given the Dementor's Kiss in 1995, losing his soul.

Neville was one of the two children possibly referred to in the prophecy as being destined to bring about Voldemort's end. However, Voldemort chose to target the Potters based on the simple concept that Harry was a half-blood like himself, thus marking Harry, and not Neville, as his equal. After Lord Voldemort's first defeat, four fanatically loyal Death Eaters tortured Neville's parents to the point of insanity, using the Cruciatus Curse, attempting to force Voldemort's whereabouts out of them; this fact initially haunted Neville, but eventually spurred him to rise to his full potential. After honing his skills and steadily acquiring self-confidence through training with Dumbledore's Army, Neville fought against Voldemort's Death Eaters countless times during the Second Wizarding War. Near the end of the Battle of Hogwarts, Neville actually attempted to charge directly at Voldemort, presumably aiming to kill Nagini, as Harry had told him she had to die at all costs. Voldemort offered Neville the chance to join him, commending his "spirit and bravery;" Neville declined, and instead, drew the Sword of Gryffindor from the Sorting Hat and succeeded in beheading Nagini. As Nagini had been Voldemort's last remaining Horcrux, Neville's incredible display of bravery allowed Harry to defeat Voldemort once and for all.

Etymology

Neville is an English name originally derived from Norman French for "new town".[52] It was the surname of a noble and a powerful warrior lineage family prominent in England in the medieval period, as well as the given name of a Prime Minister of Britain, Neville Chamberlain, whose role in history is controversial. Neville Chamberlain is infamous for his policy of appeasing dictator Adolf Hitler just prior to World War II, which is ironic, considering that Neville Longbottom never faltered in his defiance of Lord Voldemort.

Longbottom is the name of one of the Hobbits' villages at the Shire, known for its best pipe-weed.

In a game of Mastermind, Matthew Lewis commented that he has been wearing a fat suit for most the films but in the Deathly Hallows, he isn't going to be wearing it any longer (though the Neville character has been noticebly slimmer from the fourth film onward (except for Order of the Phoenix) which most likely is attributed to Neville's transition from shy and clumsy to a more hands-on supporting leader-like figure.)

In J. K. Rowling's sketches of the five Gryffindor boys in Harry Potter's year, Neville is shown as being the shortest[53], but in the films, Neville is the tallest, aside from Dean Thomas. Rowling also described Neville as blond[2], but this was never printed in the novels, and in the films, he has brown hair.

Rowling has revealed that the original last name for Neville's character was "Pupp".[53]

Matthew Lewis' favourite line is "why is it always me?"

The short film The Queen's Handbag includes a reference to Neville's grandfather playing a trick on his grandmother in 1947. The canonicity of the mini-episode is uncertain.

In the film version of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2, Neville is not burned by Voldemort, he instead makes a speech that despite Harry's 'death', he still exists in their hearts, and that he didn't die for nothing. He even taunts Voldemort, saying that he will die in vain, (though Voldemort simply laughs at him), he pulls out the sword and Harry reveals himself to be alive. As the battle restarts, Voldemort, in his rage, actually stuns Neville before he can give Harry the Sword of Gryffindor but he recovers and beheads Nagini.

Matthew Lewis had to wear fake teeth for the fourth film.

Neville never took N.E.W.T. level Transfiguration, since he only earned an Acceptable. However, like Harry and Ron, he was still recruited by Kingsley Shacklebolt into the Auror department after the battle to help track down any remaining Death Eaters.[56]